Lady Royals will rely on key returns for fall season

The Twin Rivers Lady Royals softball team is ready to hit the field and will rely on key returns as they gear up for their upcoming fall season.

Head coach Casey Parson has been a part of the Lady Royals softball program for four years. Three years as the head coach, and last spring, she stepped into the role of assistant coach. Standing beside Parson as assistant coach will be Maci Shearer.

Last fall, the Lady Royals finished 9-12 and closed out the spring season 15-9 with hopes to carry the same momentum over into this season.

As the head coach, Parson has our own philosophy for what is needed to ensure the Royals can have a successful season.

“We are going to work hard and get better with each practice and game. We are going to compete every time we step onto the field,” Parson said.

A few Key returners for the Lady Royals sophomore Alexis Parsons. Parsons was named First Team All-District, second-team All-Region and All-Confidence her freshman year. Parsons said can expect to see a lot of the mound and play a key role in the offense lineup.

Parson helped the Lady Royals to a 15-9 record for the spring season, building up the team’s chemistry as they prepare for fall. Of her 15 starts, Parson threw over 1600 pitches and went 10-5 in wins from the mound, facing 477 batters while recording 169 strikeouts.

She did solid work from the plate as she finished as the leading hitter for the Lady Royals with a batting average of .550 and connected with 44 hits, which included 27 singles, 13 doubles and 49 RBIs.

Other key returners include Junior Reese Crimson, who will also spend time at the mound this year and stepping in as shortstop. Parson said she's a hard worker, and we'll help them in the offensive lineup and on the defense.

The Lady Royals will have two seniors, Anne Mittelstadt and Gracie Suiter, who have come in this season playing key positions and being great team leaders. Heading into the season as a member of the varsity squad for the first time is Katie Acre, who is going to play catcher. Parson said she has a good glove and a strong arm behind the plate, and she will also be valuable in the offensive line up.

With very little depth on the team, Parson said the Lady Royals will need to utilize all the pieces on their team to win. Similar to the Royals baseball team, the Lady Royals will rely heavily on the work they do from the pitcher's mound.

“Our strengths will be in our pitching squad,” Parson said. We will have two pitchers who can come out and compete for each inning, along with the addition of Katie Acre behind the plate. We also have strengths in our 2 seniors. They have worked hard and been the leaders of this young team. They will also be playing key roles on defense and in the offensive line-up.”

As for weaknesses, Parson said they will need all 10 players to keep working hard and improving each day and for each one of them to stay healthy.

The Lady Royals are scheduled to open their season on the road against East Carter on Monday at 4:30 p.m. and will host their home opener against Van Buren the following day at 4:30 p.m.